He Weidong ( zh, s=何卫东; born May 1957) is a

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

( shangjiang) of the

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...

(PLA) who served as the Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission from March 2023 till his removal in March 2025, and member of the 20th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party from March 2023 till March 2025. He served as commander of the Eastern Theater Command from 2019 to 2022. He was promoted to the rank of major general ( shaojiang) in July 2008,

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

(zhongjiang) in July 2017 and general (shangjiang) in December 2019.

Education

He was born in

Nanping Nanping; historically known as Yanping ( zh, s=延平, poj=Iân-pêng is a third-tier prefecture-level city in northwestern Fujian province of China, Province, China, People's Republic of China. It borders Ningde to the east, Sanming to the sou ...

Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...

, with ancestry was in the town of Xuhe, in Dongtai,

Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...

in May 1957. In 1981 he graduated from PLA Nanjing Army Command College. In 2001 he entered the

National University of Defense Technology The National University of Defense Technology (NUDT; ) is a national public research university headquartered in Kaifu, Changsha, Hunan, China. It is affiliated with the Central Military Commission. The university is part of Project 211, ...

Military career

He enlisted in the

(PLA) in December 1972 after middle school. He was Commander of Jiangsu Military District in July 2013 and Shanghai Garrison Command in March 2014. In February 2015 he succeeded Zhu Shengling as a member of the Standing Committee of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. In July 2016 he was transferred to Deputy Commander of the Western Theater Command and Commander of the Western Theater Command Ground Force. On February 24, 2018, he was elected as a deputy to the 13th National People's Congress. In September 2019, he was promoted to become Commander of the Eastern Theater Command, replacing Liu Yuejun.

Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission

In October 2022, Zhang was named as a member of the

Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party The Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party, officially the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is the executive committee of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. Currently, the bureau i ...

and the second-ranking vice chairman of the CCP Central Military Commission. He also became the vice chairman of the state CMC in March 2023. In January 2024, at the annual meeting of the disciplinary inspectors of the PLA, He said the military should "adhere to a strict tone, use stricter standards to scrutinize the key few, and show determination to get to the bottom of long-standing orruptionproblems". He also called on the CMC Commission for Discipline Inspection to maintain loyalty and support to CCP General Secretary

Xi Jinping Xi Jinping, pronounced (born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China), chairman of the Central Military Commission ...

. In March, during a discussion with a PLA delegation, He called on crackdowns on "fake combat capabilities". In April 2025, the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'' reported that He had been arrested, placed under anti-corruption investigations and was removed from his post as vice chairman of the Central Military Commission. At the funeral of the former Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission Xu Qiliang on 7 June 2025, He's wreath was not present at the funeral, sparking speculation on whether he was removed from his post.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:He, Weidong 1957 births Living people People from Nanping Purged Chinese military officers National University of Defense Technology alumni People's Liberation Army generals from Fujian People's Republic of China politicians from Fujian Chinese Communist Party politicians from Fujian Delegates to the 13th National People's Congress Delegates to the 14th National People's Congress Members of the 20th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party